Johnny Herbert has refuted suggestions of bias from British stewards against Max Verstappen as the Briton confirmed no changes would be made to the refereeing of the Brazilian Grand Prix. The FIA’s stewards have made headlines the past two Sundays, first for penalising Lando Norris at the United States Grand Prix and then for hitting Verstappen with two 10-second penalties in Mexico. Johnny Herbert speaks out on so-called British biasNorris’ penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage in Austin was only punished with five seconds whereas Verstappen was given 10 seconds in Mexico which courted controversy and accusations of British bias.

In their rulings though, the stewards explained that Norris’ penalty was only five seconds as Verstappen had played a big role in him leaving the track having pushed them both wide. However, last Sunday it was all Verstappen. The Red Bull driver was first penalised at Turn 4 for forcing Norris off the track given the McLaren driver had the right to the corner as he had the apex and was then hit with a second penalty for leaving the track after diving up the inside of Norris at Turn 7 and forcing them both off the track.

Verstappen’s father Jos claimed bias was involved, telling De Telegraaf: “The FIA should take a good look at the staffing of the stewards, who they put there and whether there is no appearance of a conflict of interest. From former drivers, for example, who have more sympathy for certain drivers or [teams]. ”Herbert, who was on the stewards’ panel in Mexico, has scoffed at the notion of British bias.

After all, the other three stewards involved in deciding Verstappen’s penalty were not British. “There always seems to be an issue about us British stewards being ‘biased’, but when we’re in that room, we abide by the rules and guidelines from the FIA. That is how we have to judge the racing on the track,” he told Action Network.

“To say it’s ‘biased’ is absolutely ridiculous and not the case. We try as hard as possible to be fair in our judgement. “The issue we have is the tactics we see on the track, there are driving styles that are not deemed correct according to the guidelines, and the situation we had in Mexico showed that we made the right decision.

“In Mexico, the stewards other than me were American, Belgian and Brazilian, all who have the same powers as each other. To say there’s bias is ridiculous. ”Understanding Max Verstappen👉 Jos Verstappen: The F1 racer turned ruthless mentor behind Max Verstappen’s supreme F1 talent👉 Revealed: The three rules introduced by the FIA because of Max VerstappenThe Briton is also adamant that as they did in Mexico, they will adhere to the guidelines laid out by the FIA when deciding penalties.

“No, the stewards won’t change anything in Brazil,” he said. “We have the guidelines and that’s what we’ll be sticking to. We will judge what happens on the circuit in the same way we have all season.

“The decisions and penalties applied have been pretty much correct the whole season, teams have come up to us after races and agreed with our decisions. ”Read next: Max Verstappen appears ‘free to do whatever he likes’ with Red Bull protection